Electric cars retain their position as most popular vehicle type in the country

The Volkswagen’s ID.4  is the best selling electric car so far this year. 

Fully electric cars kept their lead as the most popular new vehicle category in the Irish market with 2,265 registered last month, an increase of 7% compared to last year, new figures from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) reveal.

Of all the new cars registered during August, 26.3% were fully electric, while 24.14% were hybrid petrol-electric. The market share of petrol and diesel cars stood at 20.09% and 12.56% respectively while plug-in hybrid’s market share was 14.85%.

Electric cars first beat out hybrids for the top spot in July — usually a very strong month for car sales — and has now retained that position.

Overall, there were 7,811 new cars registered during August, an increase of 3% compared to August last year. Registrations year-to-date are up 5% to 121,979 compared to the same period last year.

The increase has been largely driven by a surge in new electric car registrations. So far this year, 32,079 new electric cars have been registered, representing a 55% increase year-on-year.

The top selling car brands so far this year were Toyota, at number one, followed by Volkswagen, Skoda, Hyundai, and Kia. The best selling individual car model was the Toyota Yaris Cross followed by the Hyundai Tucson and the Skoda Octavia.

This year the best selling electric car brand has Kia followed by Volkswagen, and Hyundai.

The best selling electric car model so far this year is the Volkswagen ID.4. The Tesla Model Y is in second place, and Skoda Enyaq is third.

SIMI director general Brian Cooke said the market shift towards battery electric vehicles is “clearly evident”, and it is crucial that the Government “supports this trend with incentives that build on this momentum in what is still a developing market”.

“Budget 2027 provides the Government with the opportunity to build on the success in battery electric vehicle sales by extending and retaining the current incentives that are vital in sustaining consumer confidence.” 

There was a 10% decrease in new registrations of light commercial vehicles to 2,382 during the month. Year-to-date, this category is up 7% with 29,604 registered.

Heavy goods vehicle registrations were up 9% to 223 but down 1% to 2,205 so far this year.

Imported used cars saw a 36% increase to 8,093 in August 2026 when compared to August last year. Year-to-date imports are up 37% to 63,815.